ESSEX Police conducted 3,500 fewer stop and searches last year in Colchester compared to 2020, the Gazette can reveal.

Data outlining the number of stop and searches carried out in every Essex police district since 2018 shows police conducted fewer stop and searches in the city last year than several areas across the county, including Basildon and Southend.

There were also fewer stop and searches in Colchester compared to the combined districts of Chelmsford and Maldon, and Uttlesford and Braintree.

Police forces in England can legally carry out a stop and search if officers “genuinely suspect that doing so will further their investigations into criminal activity”, according to Essex Police.

Gazette: Falling – knife crime fell from 2022 to 2023, but is still much higher than it was in 2018Falling – knife crime fell from 2022 to 2023, but is still much higher than it was in 2018 (Image: Pexels)

In some circumstances, police can stop and search individuals without reasonable grounds if it takes place “in a defined area at a specific time when a senior officer believes there is a possibility of serious violence”.

The figures show a huge decrease in the number of times police officers executed the powers on the streets of Colchester.

In 2020, there were 5,187 stop and searches carried out by officers in Colchester – more than any other Essex district.

But that number more than halved in 2021 when 2,200 stop and searches took place, and continued to fall in 2022 and 2023.

Last year, the number of stop and searches carried out by Essex Police officers was at its lowest point since 2018, at 1,614.

The Essex districts where the most stop and searches were carried out last year were Basildon and Southend, where 2,372 stop and searches took place.

Gazette: Dangerous – there were two stabbings in Colchester at the start of the yearDangerous – there were two stabbings in Colchester at the start of the year (Image: Essex Police)

Ellie Ingram, whose son was stabbed to death in Colchester in 2013, accepted the situation is difficult given the controversy surrounding stop and search powers, but added nobody should fear being searched if they have nothing to hide.

She said: “With stop and searches in Colchester, I can’t see why that would be a problem unless you’ve got a reason not to want to be stopped and searched.

“In principle, they are a good thing – the fact that the number of stop and searches reduced from 2020 to 2023 is a crying shame, because there must be a reason why they haven’t kept it up.

“If it’s effective in getting knives off the street then they need to pull their finger out.”